Need to communicate with someone who uses a different language? Microsoft Translator is here to help you break through language barriers and connect with people from around the globe.
Microsoft Translator allows you to translate text, speech, images, and group conversations in over 100 languages - for free. Whether you’re traveling and need help understanding a menu or navigating unfamiliar streets, or you’re trying to communicate with a colleague at work or school, Microsoft Translator has you covered. Download it now and see how it can help you break language barriers, stay on top of group conversations by navigating easily within transcripts via chapters.With an intuitive interface and real-time accurate translations, Microsoft Translator makes it easier to communicate with confidence. Plus, use features like chapters and transcripts to navigate within group conversations to stay on top of the conversation.
Don’t let language barriers hold you back. Download Microsoft Translator now and see how it can help you connect with people from different cultures and backgrounds. With support for over 100 languages (https://aka.ms/applanguages), you’ll be able to communicate with ease no matter where you are in the world.
Microsoft Translator App Comments & Reviews
POSITIVE REVIEWS
NEGATIVE REVIEWS
Microsoft Translator Positive Reviews
The best I have found for a large group conversationI have been using this app for a number of years and it always did an adequate job of bi-directional translation to help me as I learned Spanish. About a month ago I discovered the Group Conversation functionality and it has been a complete game-changer. I teach ESL classes to a diverse audience with five languages present and it initially did not look like it would be possible to have a multi-language class. The Group Conversation allows everyone to hear in their original language as they learn new material and then we can all practice in English. I have been able to use it in four class sessions so far and after working out some initial kinks, it works great. The only thing I would ask for from Microsoft at this point is better written installation and set up procedures. Initial setup with a large class is cumbersome but I am not going to rate this lower than five-stars for that piece. The functionality rocks. Well done.
Update: One feature that has been changed in the new version is the removal of the two buttons in conversation mode, one for each language. It is now only auto-detect. This has not worked as well as having two buttons when it comes to accuracy. I prefer the option for either method, like it used to be..#LanguageLearnerVersion: 23.3.2
Update! Delete History!Update Jan 2024: The ability to delete your translation history is finally added! Split screen is back, sizable, and rotatable! Good user interface improvements and better options in settings! Nice update, guys!
Two bugs I found: #1: I can’t get auto-speak translations to work. #2: In split-screen mode, both user microphones are on my side of the screen. One should be on the other person’s side. hopefully these will be fixed soon.
March 2023: I really like the new ability to tap the microphone and have it continuously translate, without it shutting off the microphone every time the speaker pauses. That said, the split screen option should also still be available, as it is not practical to explain to someone speaking a different language that they should download the app and initiate conversation mode on their own phone. It’s a good feature, but should be optional, not mandatory! Also, please add back in the ability to delete all history at once. I do not wish to individually delete hundreds of translated messages. [UPDATE: Devs say this will be added back in] Also, there should be a way to do one-way translations. Sometimes the app incorrectly hears Japanese language as English, and tries to translate it into Japanese!.Lego DamashiiVersion: 24.1.1
Quality app should charge for it.I use it to find characters left out of the 2nd addition Collins while translating the other…. Well I will keep that to my self… though it all started with a Websters for 7 dollars ever English speaking person should buy and start at “letter” the problem with the binding in the 2 simpler books is an issue I may need to buy them twice. This app can do much more than the two books. But I enjoy the ancient characters considering the keyboard can distinguish them better. The knew characters are PC but the old characters are better at guiding. This program recognizes both and uses a slightly different font to help recognition of characters one may find on on the street as a business owners personal touch.
One time I was looking up characters in mandarin to see how it was said they surprised me with a addition to it that only a teacher would say.
The attributes of one’s hand weighting may account for the inability to compute a translation for my personal righting but the “cost accountant” probably said hold on that..LugvvkdixkssnzVersion: 22.5.1.1
Probably not the fairest review...I just got this ten minutes ago, but I want to say how good it is. I also got another translator where most features are paid for by subscription (which I probably won’t do because I don’t travel), but this Microsoft app is totally free and no ads or in app purchases, including the camera scan option!! I can’t say much else because I just got it, but from what I’ve seen, it’s terrific. And I previously had another app that also had limited translations and so on...
The thing I find annoying (and yet I understand) is the Monthly part of subscriptions. I’m fine to pay just once like seven dollars or whatever, but the fact that it costs monthly (even when you don’t use it and its hard to unsubscribe) is what makes me avoid it. At the same time I get it, they got to make money to improve translation. I would if I used it more... but this one is fine because its free and Microsoft can and does afford it. If they can’t you could switch to Google but I don’t like it as much....ThisisnotakidVersion: 3.2.17
Better than Google TranslatorI moved to Switzerland and I used to use google translator for everything since it had image translation feature that came very handy when in restaurants, or in streets. However, after using Microsoft translator, I never went back to Google app. First off, MS translator does much better job of pronouncing the words or a phrase by slowing it down for each retry. Secondly, when translating through image capture, it puts the words in the original image. Google and other translators bunch them all up in an unformatted paragraph which make it unclear where a sentence ends or starts. Very nice work by MS. The only improvement I would recommend is to have the landscape feature work. Currently, everything must be in portrait..ZareviewVersion: 3.2.3
Issues with Some Languages, and Multiple MissingWhenever I translate to and from Hebrew (true example), the punctuation gets completely messed up. Oftentimes I’ll hit the double arrows button to translate the results back to English to check. Whenever this happens (and this issue has improved some over time with updates), if there was a period at the end, one magically appears at the beginning as well, and so on with question marks, exclamation points, etc. (though not with commas). Also, several words in both Hebrew and other languages aren’t recognized and make radical transformations, including both common and proper nouns. In one incident, I repeatedly tried to translate a sentence containing “Galilee” (a region in northern Israel), and when I checked, “Galilee” had become “the cylinder!” I tried over and over with the same results. These were not the only times there was a glitch in the system, leading me to distrust Microsoft Translator with languages other than the Romance Languages (Spanish, French, etc.), with which I encountered much less error..I'm_a_ChristianVersion: 3.2.17
Just what I have been searching forJust downloaded this app. I have been playing with it all afternoon. We are planing a trip to Japan in the fall. I have been thinking of purchasing one of those hand held voice translators. I have been reading reviews and looking at all manor of voice translators for months. Hand held and earbud translators range anywhere from $100 to as much as $400+. Well.....this app seems to have everything I have been looking for in a voice translator. All in an app on my iPhone 8. An additional plus is I wont have to carry my phone AND a separate voice translators. And the basic is FREE! I gave 4 stars because I haven’t had a chance you use this application while traveling. I have a feeling it will rate the five stars plus!.WbarrasVersion: 3.2.2
Look no furtherIt’s the best one out of all the ones offering the same thing. I tested all of them on free trial prior to attending a lecture in Madrid (in Spanish) — I had to consume information live, fast, and clearly. This app was the only one that was reliable. It recognizes paragraph breaks in speech to feed you one point conveyed at a time in an ingestible feed. I showed the lecturer and the staff: they were all impressed and said “that’s all correct”. It also saves history. I’m sticking with this one. Forget the others asking for money just to offer very little — especially jn comparison to this app..JsaxisVersion: 24.3.1
A big improvement over the oldThe app has been completely overhauled. It did take me a few weeks to get used to the new format, but on the whole I think it is more intuitive and easier to use. Someone coming into the app with fresh eyes unused to the old product probably wouldn’t have any problems.
For Mandarin translations, I’m still frustrated by the lack of Pinyin transliterations alongside the Hanzi characters. The Pinyin is only showed if translating from Chinese (Simplified) to Chinese (Traditional) or vice versa - never to English or other languages. The Pinyin should always be shown! Such an easy thing to include and so helpful for Latin alphabet users; the oversight is confounding. Here’s hoping this feedback is considered for a later update. Thanks.DTJ0112358Version: 23.3.2
Froze when speaking out other participants’ outputHi there. I am Deaf and uses this for my chats with colleagues at work. My co-worker have the app installed and I have it installed on my iPad. Two problems that you need to note: 1) Fix the rotation issue so I can read it easily on the iPad. It wouldn’t rotate AT ALL. 2) My co-worker turned on “auto-play messages” so her iPhone will read out loud when I send a message. She also have the “Presentator mode” turned on as well — so she don’t have to press and hold the microphone button. It sure did read out loud pretty good, but the problem is that her app’s microphone froze for maybe 1 to 2 minutes unless I trigger an action like open keyboard and then close keyboard and then click on the Microphone again. It became a bit annoying and would be perfect if these issues are fixed! Thank you!.Bep6744Version: 3.2.5
Microphone inoperativeFor the last several days the microphone function of the app was not working. Other translators worked fine as far as the microphone function is concerned. I have been pulling out my hair trying to figure out the problem. Finally, I removed FaceTime from my phone and magically the microphone function has returned. I just installed FaceTime a few days ago. Weird things happen sometimes since I live in China. Please look into the interaction of Microsoft Translate and FaceTime. By the way, the exact same situation occurred on my wife’s Chinese iPhone 14. Removed FaceTime and her translator also functions again. I’ll look out for your reply. I’ll also bump you up to five stars if you reply!.KanagawamanVersion: 24.4.2
Absolutely beautiful for this magic appI got this app for Spanish and this is just amazing. It is amazing to use for translating and finding words. It is super convenient! 👍It can even preform amazing tasks such as filling coffee for me in the morning and feeding my dog. I don’t even have to go to my job anymore, this app does it for me! I don’t even have to visit my family anymore because this app can even make me invisible to the outside world. This app is great, as far as my family knows I’m dead. I recommend this app for sure but there is one thing holding me back from 5 stars. When switching languages the the one translating doesn’t switch automatically and you have to do it manually..P***ishead123456Version: 21.9.1.0
The bestI use this app almost daily, while I have been around Spanish speakers for my entire adult life and even taken several Spanish classes, I often just don’t understand or have difficulty expressing myself. Having a translator app on my phone really removes hurdles in daily life. I have tried the comparable app from Google and for English/Spanish Microsoft has done a vastly superior job handling linguistic idioms. To often other translators provide a literal word for word translation that is difficult and sometimes doesn’t convey the original intent. The chat function is great to collaborate with multiple people too..Levi AbbottVersion: 3.2.13
Really great!I love this translator. It’s super helpful on school assignments if I don’t understand a word or phrase and as someone who’s learning multiple languages at once it’s really helpful. I can use the split microphone tool to practice with my family because I can ask a question in a language I’m learning and it will translate to English for them. Then I can respond in my target language. The camera tool is helpful for restaurants and I love the phrase book. My only complaint is that in some more complex languages such as Korean it will only translate from English to Korean in honorifics. However from Korean to English it works just fine without honorifics. Otherwise I love this app and use it all the time!.Speedyreader1Version: 21.1.3.0
My lifesaverI should have known earlier that this translator had Cantonese because searching for a working Cantonese translator online with pronunciations is certainly very difficult to do, mainly because Cantonese is not spoken very much. Being a millennial, learning Cantonese is difficult, mainly because where I live in the US, no one teaches it and Mandarin is usually preferred and Google translate had Cantonese input, which for me is somewhat surprising, but there wasn't a reverse function so I couldn't type in English to them hear the spoken words. Now that I have this, I can reduce the language barrier between my relatives who only speak Cantonese..BunnyrabbithareVersion: 3.2.3
New Update Actually Pretty GoodWhen i first submitted this review it was a 1-star rating and i said some neg. things, but after using it for a few days, i came to realize it's actually much better than i initially expected, so i've updated to 4-stars. It's probably 5-stars but i have to give it a few more days of a full workout to prove to myself it meets all my translator needs. Oh, and i am discovering that i much prefer not to have the translate-as-you-type feature, which the older version had and i often found it annoying. Thank you Microsoft, sorry for jumping the gun with my first and wildly inaccurate review..LeaveTheMachineVersion: 23.3.1
The One that works!!I have a need to translate many languages since my students could come from any country on any given year. I also love to travel in the summer. I have found that this app has the widest variety of languages and is the most accurate. Other apps often give the message “Czeck (for example) is not in our language base.” I do not find that with this product. It has a huge range of choices. I can also split the screen and have immediate conversations with my students. It is fantastic!.Smart123457Version: 22.5.1.1
Perfect as browser plug-inI use this app primarily as an ‘extension’ to Safari. While iOS 14+ has native translation for certain languages, the list is short, and I’d often like to translate Polish web pages. Without this app, Safari can’t translate Polish, and to use Google would be cumbersome as only the desktop version translates entire pages.
With Microsoft Translator, I can share the page in Safari, and Translator is one of the available actions. All the translation is done on-page within Safari and is quite accurate.
The U.I. for the app itself could use some improvement, but I rarely use it. Great work by MS..RobKipaVersion: 21.9.1.0
So, so grateful!!We just met our new friends today, an Afghan refugee family. They speak Dari and we were using another translation app with Persian because that’s as close to Dari as we thought we were going to get. After a few frustrating moments where that just wasn’t cutting it, I came home tonight thinking there HAD to be a way to translate English to true Dari. A quick google search led me here and we are already communicating in a whole new, much more clear way. THANK YOU!!! The gift of communication is no small thing!!.Devoted MommyVersion: 22.2.1.6
Best language converter, with typical inaccuraciesThis is definitely the best language translator app in the store, and it’s free! The second best is iTranslate, but it’s expensive and though it has good features, it’s more wrong than this one, despite iTranslate using the same starting point. Either way, get this app and try it, the best feature bout it is the image scan that translates your documents or signs or whatever. It does a really good job and that’s where you can see the big company of Microsoft’s involvement because their AI is so good. :).OctokasVersion: 3.2.17
Landscape mode please and…So far I like it a lot but it shouldn’t say for ipad until they provide landscape mode. Typing with my attached keyboard is not practical on ipad with this app. I might need to go to a chiropractor after keeping my head bent at a right angle to read sideways😆 Also, I love that European Portuguese is included in some of the translation features, but why just some? Why not all? Apple and google translators both don’t offer any European Portuguese, so I’m thrilled to have it at all on this app, but would love it if it was available to download off-line..SyzygyprodVersion: 22.2.1.6
Update added bug, they fixed it in days.The copy function was re-added after my previous review, within 48 hours.
The only thing I can say now is it would be nice to have a setting to copy only the translated text as opposed to both, and to remove the text starting which language it is. I use this app for messaging friends, and find myself having to remove “Portuguese (Brazil)” from each message..MikeHazeJrVersion: 23.3.1
This is pretty darned cool!Easy to use, nice features and interface touches, lots of fun! Full disclosure: I’ve only been playing with the app for a little while, I’ve not yet tested it “in the wild,” and I’ve thus far only used English, French, German, Italian and Spanish.
That said, the translations I’ve seen so far seem reasonably accurate, and the ways that the app presents spoken, printed, and phonetic results are very useful. To be sure, language in general can be subjective and analog, especially around edge cases, so YMMV, but this app seems pretty darned nice. Well done!.SfordinVersion: 3.2.17
The absolute best.This translator is better then any of the other apps. It is free with NO ADS. And it is fast and smooth. I needed a good translation app, I had tried many or the paid or subscription based apps and they are garbage compared to this. I’m very happy with this app and Microsoft is definitely leading the way in real time translation. I’m so glad I gave this app a try. I wasn’t expecting it to be the best of them all. It’s so far ahead all of the others it makes me wonder how they are even on the App Store..FkrkjivfocifktjVersion: 3.2.19
Glitchy but goodFor a minute the safari plugin was working fine. Then, they updated a month or so ago and the plugin is dead weight now. Also, the keyboard collapses when switching between languages in the type menu. This is really annoying. Editing type is practically impossible in the middle of the body. The first keystroke will place at the cursor but every consecutive keystroke is moved to the end of the text body. All in all, most of the translations are fairly accurate. As well, this is the only translator I could find to do Cantonese really well..DJ B.Version: 3.2.5
Nice tool for translating.Nice tool for translating thoughts in real time. Handy for business and social use.
Quite handy for me in communicating with non-English speakers in so many languages - all I do is pick the language, and viola!
My criticism was that it didn’t take easily to allowing insert of a correction into a sentence already typed. Looks like they have improved the algorithm to fix that annoyance.
However, it does not allow formatting for a paragraph, or maybe it’s me who just never figured that out yet.
All things considered, it’s a great app..Mo-18Version: 21.3.1.0
InfoLe site est très bien ,j’ai une tablette Apple et j’aimerais bien être capable de mettre la page à l’horizontale comme sur les autres sites.merci.CofibasVersion: 3.2.13
Great App!Easy to use. If you cannot spell the word, you have the option of saying the word. I also love to use it to let me know how to say it and every time you tap on it, the voice slows down..CB-40Version: 21.8.2.1
True companion in my travelsAmazingly useful app especially when used as shared from other apps in emergency situations conversing with non-English people..@MesbahVersion: 21.6.2.1
No Esperanto?You have Klingon, which is awesome, but not Esperanto, the international language?.Nurse2009ismadVersion: 3.0.7
New update is a step backwardI loved this app until the most recent update, which completely changed the way it works.
This was especially problematic for me as it happened in the middle of a trip for me. I had been using the app to communicate with people smoothly until it updated. We all ended up downloading Google translate instead, which I previously liked less.
Please bring back auto detection and return to the more user friendly format..JagerdemonVersion: 23.3.2
Great for multi- language meetingsWe’ve been using this app at work for almost 2 years. It’s made our group meetings much more interactive and engaging. I love how it translates one language into several at the same time. Only difficulties we have is using the verbal live translator without the internet..AkomoroVersion: 21.3.1.0
I like Microsoft translatorI like Microsoft translator because I can translate the word or speech I need to translate in any language I can also write a letter in any language to my grandma or anyone it is amazing I really like it..Niti RudhVersion: 21.3.1.0
The bestThis is far the best free app ever. I speak five languages, but sometimes I struggle with expressions or sayings, and this app does the job. I strongly recommend this software..Orin's sonVersion: 20.11.4.0
The best translator app, but short of one thingNicer layout then google translate, and less robotic voices. But it doesn’t speak the words in the language you are translating from, which google translate does..DjmurnerVersion: 20.9.2.8
I’m an English teacher - It’s a life saver!!!I use Microsoft translator to communicate with my student’s parents! Without it I wouldn’t be able to speak and be understood or understand. Communication and being understood means ESL clients who feel they can speak with me directly. Work means I have food on the table. I’m very happy with the program! Wendy- Canada Pro Language School.Canada Pro Language SchoolVersion: 3.2.13
Useful app but some issuesI love the app especially since it has more niche audio options like Cantonese. But as of the last update, the app now talks like a chipmunk for
Some reason.....LegashinVersion: 20.9.2.8
Need to add more languagesCan you add Punjabi language pls?.ZvsunriseVersion: 3.2.17
I’ve made new friends with this app!I work on an organic produce farm building things and fixing things. For 5-6 months of the year we have Mexican farm labourers. They, along with this app, have helped me to learn the basics of Spanish. People really respect and love you when you take the time to learn their language to better communicate. Also, I have been able to teach some English in return! This weekend I’m having Coronas with the Mexican bros and I’m really looking forward to it.
USE THIS APP AND MAKE FRIENDS WITH PEOPLE THAT DONT SPEAK YOUR LANGUAGE...ITS AMAZING!.EmpresadorVersion: 3.2.3
This app is great!!I love the photo feature. It’s really useful to read signs and menus I don’t understand..RzjtdkyxkgxjVersion: 24.4.2
Too soonI’m a new user, so I don’t feel qualified to objectively rate this app. I’m still doing comparisons with Google Translate..Dasbot123456Version: 3.0.7
Best Translator but Online OnlyHands down best designed free translator. While it unfortunately requires online (cannot download languages), it has excellent always-on conversation control, history, and good user interface. I would love if it displayed Pinyin for Chinese Simplified. But huge plus: it supports Cantonese!.RobertSSeibVersion: 24.4.2
Great app!I needed a solution to use at a wedding with people that spoke a different language to avoid communication gaps and reduce barriers while they’re delivering a ceremony speech. This app provided me with the simplest and seamless instant translation! The QR function to join conversations is so convenient!
The only thing that I am finding hard to address is having the ability to remove the language I’m sharing as a speaker in other people’s devices. It simply clutters the screen for those getting the translated version..Melisa BVersion: 24.4.2
Nepali languageDear developer, please add Nepali language also in the app. Nepal is the most popular country in south asia for tourism..RamCan996Version: 24.4.2
Great translatorFor the past 2 days O have been looking for a translator in which I can simply take a picture of what I’m trying to translate. Today, I have found this and gave it a try, it works very well and is free! To all the people that are also trying to find a good app, give this one a try!.No iPad gamesVersion: 24.1.1
Why did you remove the Apple Watch option?I erased your app after that.Chelo GGTVersion: 24.4.1
Voice translateGood app but you seem to have dropped the voice back as it will say how to pronounce the word out loud.Papa 1620Version: 24.3.1
AmazingA great app that can even translate using your camera, amazing and very accurate, also NO subscriptions at all!!! I love it!!!!.Calico7765Version: 24.1.1
Very HelpfulI’ve only started using this app recently. I find it very helpful. Although a little clumsy to use - primarily because there is little information on how to navigate within the app.
One improvement I would request is the ability to slow down the voice playback. Sometimes it is difficult to make out all the syllables in the words as they are spoken..DolphundVersion: 23.3.2
Love this appEasy to use, great language selection. PLEASE add Persian speech support. As an educator we could really use this to support newcomers to North America..ReadingsarVersion: 23.3.2
Free International Money Transfer 💸Enjoy high maximum transfers into more than 20 currencies while saving up to 90% over local banks! The cheap, fast way to send money abroad. Free transfer up to 500 USD!AdvertorialVersion: 26.2.1
Microsoft Translator Negative Reviews
The Imploding App!!!’This was my go to translator app, I raved about it, but I just received an update yesterday and it is absolute crap now. It’s not even the same app, everything is COMPLETELY DIFFERENT! It’s not as easy to use now and I can’t copy and paste the translation like I used to. I used to be able to communicate with my friends by copying translated messages and texting them, amazing, but apparently that was too convenient and made way too much sense, so Microsoft, as usual, had to change everything and ruin a great piece of software, and why? Didn’t it take you guys a lot of time and money to build the previous version m? Anyway translations can no longer be copy/pasted now. Too add to the devastation the app used to have a split screen that you could just talk into your phone and it would translate it facing the other person, amazing idea, the best I’d ever seen, but Microsoft being Microsoft, had to change that too. Why?!?! I’m just glad I don’t drive a Microsoft car or the steering wheel would probably change from side to side annually. Just when you learn to use the software they change it. I don’t even know what this company is thinking anymore, not much, apparently. Honestly I think they just F stuff up to look busy and keep their jobs. I’m downloading my new translator app right now. Don’t even bother with this one. It’s a shadow of its former glory..El d'maréVersion: 23.3.1
The service is good but this app needs workEdit: this app has got better and worse. The problems with dark mode have been fixed.
However, the big issue now is that this service has become very unreliable. The conversation is regularly ended prematurely by the server. To be clear, the app is not crashing, my browser (on which I also join) is not crashing. The meeting is being ended at the server side. It has got much worse over the last 6 months. In today's 2 hour meeting it ended the meeting 4 times. Each time I had to start a new session.
I use Microsoft Translator on my desktop regularly and it’s great. However, this app has a few flaws. Firstly, with my iPad in dark mode it is extremely hard to see the text I type. Next, the app has not been written to function side-by-side with another app on an iPad. That feature was introduced years ago. Finally, and most significantly, if you temporarily toggle into another app this app closes the conversation and you lose everything. I’m on an M1-powered iPad Pro. This is a supercomputer. This app shouldn’t have any memory problems on such a device, it should be able to stay open and in the conversation in the background while I toggle to another app..DrScottWatkinsVersion: 23.3.2
Trash New update and UX is harder to use than previous versionI thoroughly dislike this new update they made 9 months ago. The app is actually harder to use and less seamless than it was before. The app no longer translates as you type and If you accidentally mistype a word or sentence, you have to rewrite the entire thing over again! Switching between languages is actually more difficult and it no longer gives you similar words/ multiple translations for the same word. Some default translations provided aren’t what is used in conversations, so the feature that showed multiple ways of saying a word was actually really useful. You also can’t change the reading speed for translated text anymore. These were not issues in the previous version. How can you call it a new and improved version when it’s more trash than the last?? I used to love this app but it’s gone completely downhill. They just removed all the features that made it awesome to use. I’m extremely disappointed and am deleting it. Would not recommend this app anymore..Cu_STOMERVersion: 23.3.2
The update killed itOnce again Microsoft can’t leave a good thing alone. The most recent update took away all the best features, like being able to copy/paste and especially, especially the split screen!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WTH?!? I also noticed the font size on the translations, especially for language like Hindi or Korean, is smaller makes the translation very hard to users to read.
I depended on this app when traveling through Italy, India, and Greece and have used it religiously for years now. It took away all the stress of being stranded in areas where little English was spoken. I needed it when I found myself in the emergency room in Croatia, and had no one to help me explain my problem and fill out the paperwork. I would have been lost without it. The split screen is so helpful when shopping or even renting a car. I’m sick to have to delete it and hopefully find something similar. Didn’t you all do any user research before you updated???.Himalayan HikerVersion: 23.3.2
Don't rely on Mandarin PhrasebookI downloaded this app because I’m learning Cantonese and it's one of the few translators that support it. I’m really happy to see Microsoft recognizing Canto and making resources available for learners.
That being said, I went through the mandarin phrase book out of curiosity, and there are many, MANY errors. For those familiar, it literally tells people to say “I don’t speak Chinese simplified,” which refers to a writing system not a spoken language. It goes on to suggest asking for a phone number by saying “how MUCH is your phone number” (你的电话号码是多少). There are also cases where the pinyin romanization does not match the characters above.
Most of these errors wouldn’t make it impossible to be understood, but you’d definitely get laughed at. 1 star because although the translator seems fine, the phrase book is unexpectedly terrible and anyone who would actually need/use it would never be the wiser..Kylejgordon23Version: 22.5.1.1
Works Well Mostly But…I’ve been trying this app out by using it to translate Vietnamese, a language that I know well, to see its vocabulary and expression fluency. It works very good mostly, but I noticed that it censors the word “dog” in Vietnamese! Why???? Sure it can be used as a profanity but that certainly depends on context. “Chó” in general is a very common word which literally means “dog”, there’s no other words that can replace it. I don’t know if there are other bugs like that in other languages, which makes me kind of distrust the app.
Also, please make it easier to delete previous translations. It should be as simple as a side swipe instead of having to click on it then click delete all the time, which is rather user unfriendly. Other than that, I love the way the translations pronounced. Much less robotic than google translate..EvyanVersion: 23.3.2
Share shortcut doesn’t work, and photo translation needs Romaji optionThe whole reason I tried this app was to have the “share to translate” function that Google translate didn’t have, but it doesn’t work at all. It always says that I’m not connected to the internet, and the translation options aren’t even visible when you tap on the language spots (it’s just a blank screen that comes up, and if you select done, it goes to auto-detect and Spanish. I only have Japanese downloaded for offline use, and Spanish is still the only blind selection that comes up even on airplane mode).
Additionally, there needs to be a way of checking the readings for the kanji for trying to learn the language, on the image itself. When I bring an image into the app itself to actually make the translation work, there’s no way to have the overlay show Romaji instead of the nonsense translation it puts over the text..CraftyLittleDragonflyVersion: 3.2.14
Was decent till updateThis was a decent app, the dialect wasn’t great it was translating more of a European style Spanish into South American Spanish which made the wording a little confusing but it still was good enough to understand what I was trying to say. Now with the new user interface there are less options it’s very confusing because it won’t automatically play what you said you literally have to stop the Translator and hit the play button for it to actually play what you saidWhich is a major problem when for example you’re driving and your hands have to be on the steering wheel not pressing buttons on the phone.
Bring back the old one until you get the new one properly tested and vetted, this is just a shame that you’re trying to stick and untested alpha on people guess I’ll just go and find another app..MinnieminemoeVersion: 23.2.1
The Korean wouldn’t work on picture translations...The picture translations from Korean to English weren’t working. I tried to translate parts of: a website, general web pages, and a book from Korean to English. However they just wouldn’t translate, most of the text was incomprehensible. Some parts were even showing strange things like 0’s in place of translations. The text to speech however worked great. It provided me with sources whenever I would copy and past the text onto the internet. I’m not really sure why it wouldn’t work on the picture translation function though. This was especially strange since the Spanish to English option worked just fine with this function. Please fix the picture translations from Korean to English. If it weren’t for this I would have rated this app much higher..1,2,3,TranslateVersion: 21.1.3.0
Was five stars - what happened?It’s less than a week since the new interface has rolled out and all I can ask is: why change something that was so good? A large number of features seem to be lost (like manually editing a dictated phrase that has been incorrectly transcribed or you wish simply to adapt); intuitive use has gone out the window; every translation is kept in a screen-hogging permanent scroll whether you want them or not
Update on this point - and thanks for developer feedback on this - you can delete them by switching the specific entry to full-screen mode but why not simply apply the near-standard “swipe left” to delete an entry?
Innovation means doing something different and useful. The developers seem to have forgotten the second part of this..DtuutditdVersion: 23.3.1
Update is awful and takes away core functionality in an attempt to focus on “AI”Basic design is taken away from this update. It took me 5 minutes to figure out how to “enter” and actually translate from typing from english to another language (Cantonese). It’s pressing the return button twice apparently. The first time it just added a new line?! My whole reason for using this app instead of Google Translate is because it supports Cantonese and used to make it easy to copy and paste the translation so I can quickly text my parents back but now I can’t even do that. Long pressing on the phrase does nothing and all I can do is add it to favorites??? Super poor design and organization choices overcomplicated what used to be a super helpful and easy to load / use app on the go. Pls fix!!.Abbylh97Version: 23.2.1
Laughably terrible appThis app is an abomination and an afront to modern language. I needed this app to translate some Russian and Ukrainian language books I'm selling online. I get it. Cyrillic alphabet is difficult to translate and hence why I downloaded this app, thinking it would help me facilitate that translation. Turns out I was just deluding myself. It flat out couldn't translate the Russian and Ukrainian text. So I tried to translate a German book. The app thought I was trying to translate French to English. French and German? Two very different languages. Okay, then I tried something very. Spanish. It can do Spanish right? Nope. The app thought I was trying to translate Italian to English. Seriously? At this point, I think Microsoft is playing a prank on me by releasing this laughably terrible app. I'll stick to Google Translate. It got the jobs I need done and with zero frustration..Bahamutlives22Version: 3.0.7
Used to love thisI really liked this translator and used it all the time. It was easy to use and fairly accurate.
But…
The most recent version had BIG changes which now it is much more difficult to use and has caused me a lot of frustration.
Particularly the speech recognition part…the prior version required you to chose what language you were speaking, so it “knew” which language to detect. Now, it has auto recognition which doesn’t seem to work well. It used to recognize what I was saying in my non-native language, but it does not do well with it now.
This “improvement” is not an improvement and I will have to find a different app for my needs now. I’m very diss appointed..BenMH27Version: 23.3.1
Latest version designed to be “not used”I’ve used MSFT translator for at least 5 years and while not perfect, it offered simplicity and reliably with intuitive bidirectional translation from text and very simple translation of text in photos. Since updating from v22 to v23, I’ve quickly learned just how bad an APP. can be, and how important a method to get an older version back onto my iPhone truly is.. This latest version, v23, is user hostile, unintuitive, and completely undoes all the positive feelings I had for MSFT Translator. I have failed to translate typed text, test from photos, copy from a translation, and copy translated text from a photo.. the APP is now completely non-functional for me…but maybe I’m just … brain dead!
Give us back the V22 UI … please !.SimpliPoor APPVersion: 23.2.2
Do not like the new update!!!!Before the update I could run meetings smoothly and speak to my English language learner students easily. Now my students cannot just communicate with me quickly 😡. I get frustrated because it won’t just say what you say back you have to press buttons and it takes time to process before it repeats. Then you have to switch languages before the other person can speak.
I work with k-5 students they don’t have a phone to connect with mine!
I get where it is going and why it was done but I wish it was an add on and not a complete change. I got a lot of Gen Ed teachers and office admin on this app to help them with students and their parents now we are all disappointed.
Too many steps 🤯.Locd mommaVersion: 23.3.2
Still broken UX for translating imagesNot sure why they don’t fix this. It’s been over a year and I’ve reported this bug several times. Repro: take screenshot > tap on preview image (iPhone X) > share > Microsoft translator > hangs trying to translate.
Since it hangs, there’s an option to tap to open the app, but if you do, it takes you to the camera mode! You still have to tap on images > choose album > look for image > select > translate.
This is the worst UX for translating an image. Why not just open to translate? Why not swipe sideways to toggle through photo album? Why the hang when taping the share to ms translator? Why? Why? Why???? Are there any product designers actually working in this team? This is unacceptable. Great technology, but lousy execution and UX. No dedication or love from the product builders..ChowowzVersion: 3.2.5
New formatI hate saying this as I used to love this translator. But I recommend Google translate. Also the person that reads and responds to these messages doesn’t read the messages or doesn’t understand my issue with the application. I’m deleting the app from my phone.
The new format of the app is very frustrating. Specifically when copying text, it pastes in both languages. So if you are using it for text messages, you have to delete one entire translation as well as the name of the language that you are translating. Please fix this or I will just move to another application. Despite the fact that your app has a better translation of the language that I’m learning and using. Thanks.Christopher doesn't likeVersion: 23.3.2
Useless nowI use to be able quickly open this app, type something in English, hit the share button, and it would send the translation to a message or I could copy it. Now you need a PhD in UX and have to click multiple times to do the same thing, and it doesn’t even support the most basic use that most people use this for. Use another app until they bring back what actually worked.
Oh and I’ve lost count how many times you click the little keyboard icon where the Enter button should be that actually closes the input and you lose everything you just wrote.
They butchered such a great app in the big update I will never use this garbage again..Supadev964Version: 23.3.2
Update ruined the appThe latest update ruined the app. This was my go to app for conversing with my students that do not speak English. I would pull up the app start speaking into it and it would translate and automatically translate and play the translation aloud. Now it will translate but I have to click on a button to get the translation to play aloud and half the time it won’t play after I hit the button. I work with elementary school children that may not be able to read so the play back is the feature I need and when it doesn’t always work it makes the app useless. Will be finding a new translation app. No idea why they would think this update would be an upgrade..Rena77.456Version: 23.3.2
Functionality removed to force you to use Edge BrowserThis app used to come with a great extension that allowed you to translate webpages in Safari, and also the ability to translate text in images without first downloading the image by just long-pressing on it in ANY app. Well good thing Microsoft hates its end-users, because these features were removed from the Translator app and crammed into their Edge browser in order to force you to download and use it. No thanks. 🙄 Thankfully Apple added a translate feature to Safari, but I've yet to find a replacement for the image translate feature that doesn't require me to first download the image to my device. Thanks for nothing as usual Microsoft..NinjaGrapeVersion: 24.3.1
Text from Participants outside my region not shownI am in the US and I wanted to use the app to communicate with colleges in Latin America (Brazil / Mexico). They can join a conversation I start, but I never see any of their text come through. No problems with colleges in the US on the same call. Tried having the Brazil and Mexico college start conversation with the same results. WiFi/5G cell, no change. Android/ios, no change. All of my colleges in the US speak English so I’m having trouble finding much function with this app unless I travel. Is this related to some sort of network routing limitation? Who knows, haven’t found anything on MS support..JamesHealthineersVersion: 24.4.2
Why?!!!The previous version was leaps and bounds more functional than this “beta-feeling” update. The now missing Safari extension and 280 character copy limit makes the update useless when trying to read translated pages. Not sure what the objective of this update was, but sadly it went in the wrong direction of progress. I wish I knew ahead of time not to complete the update. Assuming we won’t be getting the prior version’s functionality back, I’m now forced to just bookmark the Google Translate site and copy/paste the URL there for a full page translation as an alternative since Apple’s native extension is still rather limited in available languages..IOS_User_3823Version: 23.3.1
Camera feature doesn’t work anymoreThis was my go to translator app because I was able to take a picture and have it translated for me. But recently it stopped working. I always translated Spanish to English because my husband’s family all speak Spanish because they’re from Ecuador. It was a great way for me to translate messages. But now when I click on Spanish to English and take a picture it goes back to English translating English which obviously does me no good. I’ve uninstalled it and reinstalled it I even tried to put Spanish to Spanish just to see what it would do and it goes back to English. So they get one star for me until they fix the camera because that’s the only way I can use the translator.Rhonda489Version: 3.2.4
HATE the updateThis was my favorite app for translating. I prefer it to Google translate! However I absolutely hate this update. And will be switching back to Google. It may look more aesthetically pleasing, but it is far less practical.
It does not translate as I type anymore. Now I have to hit “go” to see the translation. And it does not permit editing after that. I need to retype everything because I’m not able to edit the text I already translated.
Moreover, when I hit “copy” it copies both the original language and the language it was translated into. That is an annoying feature. All I need is the translated phrase..AssfooogVersion: 23.3.2
Update is horrible. Change it back!There was absolutely no need to update this once perfectly useful app. It’s now garbage. The newest update is so terribly confusing to use with most of the main features I downloaded it for now gone. Can’t even figure out how to download languages to use offline anymore - if that’s even still possible. What’s the point of this app if it can’t even do the basic things advertised?.CocoabeanpupVersion: 23.3.2
Why the awful update?This was a perfect app, why did you ruin it??.NomenondisponibileVersion: 23.3.2
Doesn’t translate websitesUsed to be a really good app on a phone. It would be useful at translating websites. Now there is no option for it. Go back to your old platform. There is a need to be able to translate in many dimensions..Seek n u wont findVersion: 23.3.2
Microsoft ruined the appAs of the new update in April 2023 the offline use feature was removed rendering the app useless without access to the internet. Current rating: 0 out of 5 stars Previous rating: 5 out of 5 stars.Angry user 25Version: 23.3.2
Updated to garbageI used this app exclusively when I lived in China because I had no access to Google. I recently deleted it because with its new quote improvements“ it has become virtually unuseable.
It’s frequently either dumps all of the written work to translate or translate it back into the same language then I typed it in. Not very effective.B1llmeVersion: 23.3.2
Don't like the new versionThe new version is too difficult to use, there are so many bugs, can I use the old version back?.Rnb2816Version: 23.3.2
No longer impressedI’ve used and loved this ap for about 5 yr. Loved that it worked offline. With the latest update it not only has a totally different look but it no longer works offline..not impressed when I now have to use data or it doesn’t work at all when out of cell range ☹️☹️☹️.BkrgmaVersion: 23.3.2
New updateNew update is trash. Super nice to have a section to see basics and greeting etc so cool, but having to delete every translation & the format compared to before sucks. Also when switching between 2 languages (ex Eng to German then wanting to keep the text just switch around German to Eng) & having to retire is annoying
This app is so close to being the best one but not quite, not quite..JMH2222222Version: 23.3.2
New update is horrible.The old format was simple and easy to use, now it’s confusing and honestly terrible..Lunar blacksackVersion: 23.3.1
New updateHave been using it for more than 3 years, the new update is so complicated and useless. Now delete it.Sere321Version: 23.3.1
New updateDo not like the new update.BricksfrommudVersion: 23.3.1
Speech playback is messed upThe speech playback sounds like it’s being run at 100x speed. I don’t know how this didn’t get noticed by your QA..Mer1inVersion: 20.9.2.8
When will you update this thing?It seems like you're doing absolutely nothing to make the experience of this app better.
Why is it that I can use this app in landscape mode?
Why can't I split screen?
Why aren't transliteration for languages with different scripts (like Chinese) directly below the translation which having to swipe over like an idiot? And why do they take so long to show up?.MatthxVersion: 3.2.13
FreezesWorked great before, suddenly unusable. Thanks Microsoft.DigitalMannVersion: 3.2.10
Latest update is brokenNot sure what you guys did in the latest update but the picture translation option is very broken. You can’t translate a saved image or take a picture for translation..BurnsWRCVersion: 3.2.10
Doesn't copy textI've been reading the previous reviews and it's true. You can't copy text with this app. Double tapping the word doesn't do anything. You have to press and hold, wait for the native copy, prompt. Then you must manually swipe to make the selection, then select copy. Horrible interface here which shows lack of thought for the end-user.
Microsoft MUST implement a copy button like the leading search engine provider and pretty much everyone else who have a dedicated button to copy text for translation apps for iOS. 👎👎.YVR_888Version: 3.2.9
Been using for years but the new update is garbageJust updated the app I don’t know what they did but it’s garbage now. This is also the first review I have ever done because it is that bad. Download something else..PhojlVersion: 23.3.1
Voice recognition is badWhile this is some good features, the voice recognition is really poor compared to Google and Apple translate. It translates Quiero as kiro for instance..Jason TorontoVersion: 24.4.2
Mise à jourBonjour je trouver excellent cette application avant la mise à jour Malheureusement suite à la mise à jour as trop changé les fonctionnalités Je donne 1 étoiles.Fiat1000Version: 24.3.1
The latest version is bad. Don't "upgrade"The previous version allowed to translate offline with downloaded languages. This is actually a new app and the better, older one is gone. It's a shame. I will be looking for another app as you cannot roll back to the previous version..Veryy unhappyVersion: 24.1.1
Good app … but MicrosoftEvery update tries to circumvent your privacy. Wether automatically enrolling you in analytics report and collecting information you don’t agree to, or turning your microphone “on” - to better serve you of course. Avoid if you value your privacy..SiCabreadoVersion: 24.1.1
TerribleThis software is awful, such incompetent people , i hate when is not simple and intuitively, for example, i want to download offline languages, you must be lucky, is not in settings, more than that, i selected the 2 languages, and i choose enter my words by keyboard, you are locked with his 2 languages you need to move back to choose the method to enter your words. simply awful!.Ovis70Version: 24.1.1
Offline Support MissingPrevious features now removed so rather limited in capability.ScottyjnVersion: 23.3.2
HelpThis app was amazing it had voice audio so I could hear how it was pronounced and was very useful but now every time I try to translate something it says “translate request error” I’ve tried to put a different language different words anything but nothing works it just continually says that so I can’t use the app anymore. I am also having a very hard time finding someone I can contact about this to help me so if someone could reach out that would be very helpful thank you.Amy76534Version: 23.3.2
Was amazingMicrosoft took what was, hands down the best translation app on the internet and completely destroyed it by changing the UI to something horrendous.
Not kidding. It went from literal perfection to a complete trash heap..CurticusqVersion: 23.3.2
Chinese input method issueWhen inputing Chinese words, it will fail to continue after choosing some characters..NetcafVersion: 23.3.2
Payoneer 💰Payoneer is an online payment platform that lets you transfer money from any corner of the world! A best and must have payment service for every blogger, traveler, freelancer, affiliate marketer, consultant, virtual assistant, business person, online sellers, and receivers. Earn $25 for free by joining Payoneer. Sign Up Now!AdvertorialVersion: 26.2.1
What do you think Microsoft Translator ios app? Can you share your thoughts and app experiences with other peoples?
Microsoft Corporation
